The defending national champion's schedule is set with the release of the American Athletic Conference portion of it Thursday afternoon.

UConn might not have much meat in the American, but the Huskies have loaded up on the non-league slate as they enter their third season under coach Kevin Ollie.

The breakdown of UConn's home venues as well as game times will be announced at a later date.

Here's a look at what senior Ryan Boatright and company have ahead of them this season:

Top overall games

1. Vs. Duke, Dec. 18 at Izod Center: The team everybody loves to hate against the defending national champs. Coach K. vs. Coach Ollie. A great early Christmas gift for basketball fans with two of the top programs from the past couple of decades meeting.

2. Vs. Texas at UConn, Nov. 30: Texas has been kind to the Huskies come postseason time, but the Longhorns are coming north -- and could be a top-10 team when they arrive. A huge home test for UConn because Texas is loaded this season.

3. At Florida, Jan. 3: The Gators lost a lot from their Final Four team, but the Gainesville faithful will want some redemption after UConn ruined their title run. Ollie is 2-0 lifetime against Billy Donovan.

Top AAC games

1. At SMU, Feb. 14: The first battle between the expected top two teams in the American. Larry Brown had Ollie's number last season, including spanking them at Gampel in front of the 1999 championship team and a sold-out crowd.

2. Vs. SMU at UConn, March 1: The rematch could turn out to be the deciding factor for the top seed in the conference tournament.

3. Vs. Cincinnati at UConn, Jan. 10: The Huskies did everything the Bearcats wish they could have last March. Cincy lost a lot in Sean Kilpatrick and Justin Jackson, but Mick Cronin always seems to milk the most from his squad.

Top opposing players

1. Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke: The Blue Devils have a much-hyped recruiting class, starting with the 6-foot-10 big man who is expected to be an instant 15-point/10-rebound guy. He should be a great test for 7-foot UConn sophomore Amida Brimah. Duke also has point guard Tyus Jones and 6-6 wing Justise Winslow coming in.

2. Myles Turner, C, Texas: Another big-man test for Brimah, but the 7-foot freshman Turner is surrounded by a group of veterans who went to the NCAA tournament's third round a year ago. Turner starts the season already with talk that he'll be a lottery pick in June. Watch out for PG Isaiah Taylor, too.

3. Michael Frazier, G, Florida: One of the country's best 3-point shooters (118 last season), but the Huskies held him to a combined 10 points in two meetings in 2013-14. The Gators also have talented but troubled forward Chris Walker, who could be a star if he gets it together.

Three things to watch

1. Memphis: SMU and UConn top the AAC, but are Shaq Goodwin and a young backcourt good enough to give the conference another national power? Minus Louisville, the American needs Memphis to stay a top team and could use a few more schools to up their games and stay in the power race.

2. Welcome wagon: East Carolina, Tulane and Tulsa are the replacements in the conference for Louisville and Rutgers. Tulsa lost coach Danny Manning to Wake Forest, but the Golden Hurricanes come off winning the Conference USA championship and going to the NCAA tournament. They are also the best chance among the newcomers to make an impact in its first season.

3. Nic Moore vs. Boatright: The SMU junior point guard led his team to the NIT finals while averaging 13.6 points, 4.9 assists, and 2.5 steals. He shot 43.6 percent from 3-point range. Boatright was a defensive star in the NCAAs and it's his team now in Storrs. Let the AAC Player of the Year hype begin.